Shattered Limits
by andaboveall
Summary: Rachel is trying to protect one of her students, Puck is the only person she knows that can help her. Future!fic.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey guys! So this is my first multi-chapter fic. I just have one other fic, a Puckleberry oneshot. If you've read it, this is nothing like that at all. This is an angst ridden future fic. Very angsty, very. I don't know how long it will be yet, but definitely not short. Anyways I hope you like it, reviews are love :D**

**Disclaimer: Glee absolutely does not belong to me, even if I wish it did. **

Rachel Berry had been sitting at her desk, staring at the phone placed in front of her for the last 20 minutes. To a stranger it would appear as if she was her perfectly composed self. However inside, Rachel was about 2 minutes away from a full blown panic attack. It also wouldn't be her first one that day.

_Come on Rachel, you have to do this. Pick up the phone and dial. Don't let the fear get to you, just pick it up and dial. It's the only way to guarantee her safety._

_

Earlier that day, a student had come into her office, looking a little frightened, and very shy. She didn't seem to know what to do, so she just shoved an envelope towards her, and sat down, pointedly looking everywhere except Rachel.

Rachel had slowly read through the seemingly innocent letters. At first they started out sweet and romantic, like your average high school secret admirer, but as she read on, Rachel noticed the change in the writers tone, from admiration to anger. It was almost imperceptible, but Rachel was all too familiar with notes like this. She had asked the girl, a freshman by the name of Becky gathering from the letters, where she had gotten them. The girl had quietly replied that they had been showing up in her locker first thing in the morning since about a month prior.

Rachel had decided to call the Lima police officer assigned to McKinley High after sending Becky to class stating she would call her back in later. Officer Derek Green arrived a short time later and had also read over the letters, however he insisted until there was an outright threat, or the writer announced them self, there was little the Lima Police Department could do to help. Apologizing, Officer Green got up and left, telling Rachel to call if there were any developments.

That was when Rachel lost it. She had run to the nearest bathroom, feeling the bile rise in her throat. After emptying her stomach she had slid to the floor where she broke down completely, giving in to the panic that had been rising since she had read those letters sent to Becky. They were so similar to the ones she had started receiving a little over two years ago. She felt the past pulling her under.

_His words taunted her as he stood over her with the knife in his hand. Repeating the phrases from letters she'd been receiving for 6 months. Proclaiming his love, his need to be with her. Rachel struggled in the bindings around her wrists and ankles. She could feel the ropes digging into her skin making it raw, but she couldn't just lay there and not fight back. He laughed and just kept talking repeating over again that she was his, how he longed for her and watched her perform, knowing he had to have her. It made her sick to think he had been watching her and she had never realized it._

Rachel finally began to pull herself back to the present.

_Its okay Rachel, pull out of it. There's still time to protect Becky, this won't end the same. _She repeated those words in her head over and over again until the panic started to subside. When she had calmed enough, she slowly got to her feet and walked over to the sink. While she rinsed her mouth, and washed her face and hands, she thought about what she could do to protect Becky. The girl was scared, but probably wasn't sure as to what it all meant, what was really happening. Rachel on the other hand knew something was wrong. Those weren't your run of the mill secret admirer letters, and she was downright terrified for the girl.

Rachel had finished her work for the day, and for the next two days before realizing she couldn't put it off any longer, it was already way later than she'd realized.

That was how she ended up back at her desk in the Guidance Office staring at the phone. She knew of one person who would believe her, who would help her protect Becky; however picking up the phone and dialing his number was easier said than done. She knew she would regret making this phone call, but there was really no avoiding it. Tamping down the rising panic once more, Rachel finally squared her shoulders, picked up the phone and dialed.

_

Locking the door behind him as he entered his New York apartment, Noah Puckerman promptly placed his cell, wallet and holstered gun on the table inside the door, and walked immediately into the kitchen. Damn but he needed a beer after the day he'd had. Working in the Special Victims Division of the NYPD had its ups, and more than its fair share of downs. Today was one of those days where he wondered why he did it, why he put himself through seeing these broken women and children, many of whom would never be the same.

There was always that one case though, the one where everything went right, where they caught the bastard, and the victim had closure. Those were the cases that made Puck realize it was all worth it.

Puck also knew that sometimes, catching the bastard that had caused so much pain wasn't always the solution. Sometimes someone had suffered so traumatically that they couldn't be fixed, not even with the help of those who loved them. _Come on Puckerman, stop thinking about it, there's nothing more you can do. It's over, get used to it._

He really didn't need to dwell on the past; he'd had one hell of a day to begin with. A young woman had shown up early that morning stating she'd gone to a NYU party the night before and had woke up this morning not remembering a thing past her first drink in her own dorm room. She'd been bruised up pretty bad, and after examination at the hospital, they had determined she had been raped repeatedly. Cases like this made Puck sick. To think of all the horrible things people could do to other humans.

Deciding he needed a distraction Puck flipped on the TV and after some channel surfing settled on watching the hockey game. There wasn't much else on to watch anyways. About half way through the game he got up and got another beer. The hockey game and the first beer just hadn't been enough to clear his mind of the shitty day he'd had.

_

Puck was woken out of a light sleep a little over an hour later to his cell ringing on the table inside the door. "I'm coming" he yelled, realizing full well whoever was on the phone couldn't hear him. Puck hated being woken up, he had a hard time sleeping most nights so he slept when he could.

Stalking over to the phone, he didn't recognize the number but that wasn't unusual, he was bad with phone numbers.

"Ya, this is Puck"

"Hi Noah"

He flinched, he recognized that voice. It couldn't be, not after all this time. "Rachel?"

"Yes, it's me" she replied as the past came crashing down on him.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys! Here's chapter 2. I probably won't be updating this often all the time, especially because my exams start in a week, but it's very hard to concentrate on studying with plot bunnies hopping around your brain, so chapter 2 is out earlier than expected. Reviews are love! Special shout out to Sassy26 and Goldstar for your feedback on the previews. Also all my crazy Puckleberry tweethearts! If you enjoy raving about Glee, Mark Salling, and Puckleberry feel free to follow me on twitter (/shannonphenix) I also often update when I'm writing and when you can expect new chapters. Okay end rant, off to the story. **

**Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Glee, just thought I'd clear that up.**

Puck was swamped with guilt; it fell on him with full force every time he had thought about her. But hearing her voice now made the weight of that guilt too much to bear. He slid to the floor, as he sucked in short breaths. He could vaguely hear her talking still, but all he could remember was the panic he'd felt that night a year and a half ago, and the guilt he had carried with him ever since.

"Can you do that Noah?" he heard her ask, pulling him back to the present. "I'm sorry, can I do what?"

Rachel then explained the story of a young girl who had come to her with a stack of letters that had gone from praising to predatory over time, how she had spoken to an Officer Green with the Lima police department who had said they couldn't do much to help. "I know you have some friends who work there now, do you think you can call them and get them to reconsider a plan of action? No one thinks this will amount to anything, but I think differently. I need to make sure Becky is safe."

As he'd listened to Rachel, he had heard the thinly veiled panic in her voice, not many people would have noticed it, Rachel had always been good at putting on a brave face. He had to do whatever he could to help her, it was the only way he could live with himself.

He had made sure to keep tabs on her so he knew she was working at McKinley High. "Sure I can do that" he told her, his mind already spinning with ways to help.

"Thank you Noah, I appreciate it, I better get…" she said, trying to end the conversation.

"Wait Rach!" He heard her wince and suck in a breath of air at the name. "How are you doing Rachel?"

"I'm doing just fine" he heard her reply. They both knew it was a lie.

"Thanks again Noah, I have to go now"

"Anytime Rachel" he answered back, but she'd already hung up.

_

As he tossed and turned in bed that night, Puck thought about what Rachel had told him. He didn't know whether the letters were serious, or if it was just her past causing her to make something more of it. All he knew was that Rachel believed something was wrong. He made up his mind then about what he had to do.

Rolling over to look at the clock, Puck saw that it was 4:30 am. Realizing he'd gotten about all the sleep he was going to, he hopped out of bed and headed into the shower. He had a lot to get done that morning anyways, no point wasting it in bed when he wasn't sleeping.

After his shower he went online and bought a plane ticket and set up a rental car. He then threw together a bag of clothes, about enough for a week. He wasn't sure how much he'd need. While clearing out the fridge he called his supervisor.

"Damnit Puck, you can't just decide to up and leave, we need you around here. She knows how to take care of herself Puck. You have to let her be."

"I need to help her Peter. You don't understand, she puts on a brave front, but she can't fucking handle this on her own. I need to go."

"Fine, if you feel it's necessary, go. But know there will be hell to pay when you get back."

Puck nodded to himself, finishing off the milk in the fridge. "I know sir."

Hanging up, Puck wandered around the apartment, trying to expel the nervous energy that clung to him. Deciding it was no use; he grabbed his bags, and locked up. Hailing a cab outside, he headed for the airport; and back to the town he grew up in to face his biggest demons. _Game face Puckerman._

_

_She could feel the gag being pressed over her mouth and panicked. Thrashing around she let out a short yelp and she felt the bindings at her wrists tighten as she moved. Groggy from sleep her reactions were slow, and her attacker managed to gag her properly before she could scream again. She heard him laugh while she continued to struggle free; she still had her legs untied._

"_Don't panic dear"_

_She recognized that voice, but she couldn't quite place it. She refused to let him get the best of her. She continued to struggle, but soon he had grabbed her legs and was tying up her ankles, she managed to kick him in the nose, but he finally got the better of her, tying her completely to the bed. The panic truly set in then, she was basically a sitting duck. What did he want with her?_

Rachel woke straight up in bed, drenched in a cold sweat and panting. _Just a nightmare Rachel, take a deep breath_.

She'd thought they'd been getting better. The nightmare's had been much less frequent in the past 4 months. This situation with Becky was dragging all her old fears to the surface again and she wasn't sure how she was going to manage this time around.

Sighing, she decided to start her day. It was clear sleep would be elusive now. Her cat Maxx followed her as she headed into the bathroom for a shower, being careful where she stepped. While in the shower she thought about all that she still needed to finish around the house in order to distract her from the events of the day before.

Rachel had bought this house a year and a half earlier on a whim. It was in desperate need of some tender loving care, a fixer-up for sure, and she had needed a distraction. Fixing up the once beautiful home on the outskirts of Lima seemed like a perfect plan until Principal Figgins had heard she was back in town and had come knocking.

Emma and Will were leaving McKinley to go live in Columbus and raise their son. Figgins had needed a guidance councilor and someone to run glee club and had approached Rachel. She has figured that the more distractions she had the better so she had agreed, and work on the house had fallen on the wayside, other than what she had managed to do over the summer.

Rachel was glad that no one from glee all those years ago had stayed in Lima. She wasn't sure she could face them; they would know she was just running through the motions. She was surviving at best and she knew it. She sang only to demonstrate songs to the current members of New Directions. Her students complimented her voice, and she still sang well, hit all the notes, but anyone who knew her would realize there was no emotion behind her words anymore.

Getting dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, Rachel headed for the kitchen. Eating a bowl of cereal she went over her to do list for the house. Today she settled on stripping the aging wallpaper from the living room, and go from there. Hard work was the best way to keep the demons at bay.

_

_When the fuck did the drive from Dayton to Lima get so goddamn long? _Puck thought this day couldn't drag on any longer. He'd gone to the airport early hoping they'd be able to fit him in on an earlier flight out. No such luck, so he's sat at the airport for 4 hours waiting for his flight, trying his best not to end up in one of the airport bars, it was still the morning after all. He'd succeeded in avoiding the bars, but just barely.

Finally after a long wait at the airport, a (seemingly) long flight, and a drive that never seemed to end, he arrived in Lima. It was around 4 in the afternoon and he decided to stop at the police station first to get some information from the officer who had met with Rachel yesterday. Puck spoke with Officer Green, but he didn't make much progress with the man. _Stubborn bastard. _He left the police station with no more information than when he'd arrived.

Puck was both dreading and looking forward to his next stop. Pulling up to the house, he saw what condition it was in. It definitely needed some good hard work. He walked slowly up the path to the front door.

He hesitated, _man up Puckerman, ring the damn doorbell. _Taking a deep calming breath, he hit the button and heard the bell chiming inside. For a while it sounded as if no one was going to answer. Just as he was about to ring again he heard her voice.

"Coming"

_

Rachel hurried to the front door. She wasn't sure who it could be; she almost never had visitors out here. She'd gotten so much done today and had been able to push through her resurfaced anxiety.

When she pulled open the door she saw the last person she had ever expected to grace her doorstop.

"Hi"

She slammed the door in his face. He wasn't supposed to be here. It wasn't fair, she'd been doing just fine on her own. Sucking in deep breaths she collapsed to the floor.

"Rachel?"

"Go away! You're not supposed to be here!"

She couldn't handle seeing him again; just talking on the phone yesterday had been too much for her. Feeling the panic setting in again Rachel bolted to the bathroom and emptied her stomach. This was becoming somewhat of a habit.

As she slid to the floor, she felt his arms around her, pulling her into his embrace. Rachel started crying, huge sobs wracking her body, making her shudder.

"Shhh, Rachel" he whispered into her hair, hugging her closer.

"Noah"


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I'm astounded by the amount of people who have added this to their story alerts. The reception has been amazing, thank you. I would love to get more reviews, they make me smile and make me write faster, so review! Enjoy chapter 3 =)**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Glee**

Rachel drew in a deep breath, coming out of the haze of fear that had arrived when Noah had shown up at her front door. Realizing she was surrounded by him, while he whispered calming words into her hair, she immediately tensed up. Taking notice of the change, Puck drew back until he was holding her at arm's length and looked her in the eyes.

Rachel's fear was quickly replaced with anger. She stood up and braced her arms back on the bathroom counter. _What the hell is he doing here! All I asked was for him to phone the Lima police department. How dare he think he can just show up at my front door?_

Puck rose to his feet, and braced himself. He knew that look in Rachel's eyes, he was about to get a patent Rachel bitch out. He fought back a smile he knew she wouldn't appreciate seeing. But _holy fuck_ it was good to know that at least some of the old Rachel was still there.

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing? Showing up at my front door, barging into my house. What gave you the impression that you were welcome here?"

"I know I'm not welcome, I got that message loud and clear when you slammed the door in my face" Puck answered back, fighting to sound calm and not really succeeding. The tension in his voice was definitely noticeable.

"Clearly you don't take a hint very well, you still barged in" Rachel shot back, not even attempting to sound calm, she was furious that he felt he could just waltz into her house and drag her into his arms like nothing had changed.

"Rachel I could hear you running through the house like a madwoman, those sobs weren't exactly quiet, was I supposed to just walk away?"

"Yes godamnit! You shouldn't even be here in the first place. Now get the hell out of my house!"

"You can scream at me all you want babe, but I'm not going anywhere" Puck replied back, pulling his lips into a smirk and leaning casually on the bathroom doorframe.

"The hell you aren't! I don't need you here; I'm perfectly fine on my own."

"You've always been a horrible liar"

Rachel was practically vibrating with anger at this point. "I'm not lying, now leave!"

"Not a chance in hell" Puck shot back, just as a cat started rubbing against his leg, purring loudly. He reached down to pet him behind the ears, and the cat melted, purring loudly and closing his eyes.

"Traitor" Rachel whispered, giving her cat the evil eye.

"What's his name?"

Rachel let out a frustrated groan and answered "His name is Maxx"

Pushing past Puck and her treacherous cat, Rachel stalked towards the kitchen. She realized that if Noah was intent on staying, nothing short of the end of the world could make him leave. She really wasn't prepared to deal with him right now. After talking to Becky yesterday, her tenuous hold on her sanity was weakening. It had taken her hours yesterday to even work up the courage to pick up the phone and call him.

He'd followed her into the kitchen, she could feel him watching her as she pulled herself together and turned around to face him. In the setting sun she caught a reflection of light come from his hand as he shoved them into his pockets and taking a deep breath. _Must be a trick of the light._

"Look Rachel, you can be pissed that I'm here, and yell until your face turns blue, but I'm here because of what you told me yesterday, and until we know Becky is safe I'm not leaving Lima. And after the way you reacted when I showed up, there's not a chance out there that I'm leaving you here alone when you're clearly terrified."

Puck watched her after his little speech. He wasn't one to talk a lot, but some things just needed to be said. She betrayed a second of panic before she put back up her steely resolve. That second proved to him he was making the right choice; she couldn't face this situation with her student on her own.

Rachel stood there for a long while, silently watching him before finally giving in. "Fine Noah. Whatever. I'm too exhausted to argue with you right now, this house is taking a lot of work to fix up. I'm going to eat, shower and go to bed. I'm sure you can take care of yourself."

Puck smirked and nodded, before heading back out the front door to grab his bag from the rental.

_

Puck had chosen to sleep in the guest bedroom right next to Rachel's. The house was a small ranch-style bungalow and surprisingly, it fit her perfectly. Despite the exhaustion from a long day, he lay awake reflecting on what he had learned of this Rachel in the short time he'd been here. She'd lost weight, and being as tiny as she was, he couldn't believe she had much more there to lose. She was still goddamn beautiful.

He saw how she still put on a brave face, and how she still had a sharp tongue. Perhaps now sharper than ever, although he suspected it was a defense mechanism. He'd always been able to read her well, and although she projected the image that she was content, and felt safe, he knew better. Puck could see the fear and panic clawing apart her insides trying to escape.

He heard Rachel in the next room tossing and turning. She had been doing so since going to bed 3 hours ago, though it had stopped about an hour earlier as she apparently succumbed to sleep. This was different though, it sounded as if she were thrashing around on her bed. A feeling of uneasiness washed over him, something wasn't right.

Puck got out of bed and padded over to the door, opened it and moved down the hall. Just as he was getting to Rachel's room he heard a broken sob tear from her throat. Terrified he pushed open the door and ran to the bed. Realizing she was having a nightmare, he said her name softly, hoping to wake her. She just continued to thrash around.

"Rachel. Wake up. Rachel honey it's just a nightmare." She was still deep inside her nightmare, sobbing brokenly and jerking around. Puck gently grabbed her wrist, and immediately realized his mistake when her eyes bolted open and she started hitting and kicking him. He quickly let her go.

"Rach, it's me Noah. It's okay it was just a nightmare."

He could see it in her eyes when she realized where she was, and started to calm down. Her shirt had ridden up in her sleep, and Puck could see her smooth stomach almost shining in the moonlight. It was then he caught a glimpse of the five stark white scars up her left side, his eyes burning into them as she quickly pulled her shirt back down to her waist.

His chest ached and guilt washed over him at seeing the scars again. This time however it was accompanied by a fury he hadn't felt in almost year and a half. _Damn that bastard for hurting her like this. She's still not recovered; nightmares of the night of the attack still plaguing. Will she ever be the same _Puck wondered, a sadness slipping through him at the thought that, no, she probably wouldn't.

"I'm fine Noah. You can leave now."

Puck opened his mouth to argue.

"_Please" _she whispered before he had the chance to say anything. Looking in her eyes, seeing her vulnerability, he just nodded. Slipping from the room he looked back to see the tears running down her cheeks.

_

Rachel had gotten very little sleep since Noah had woke her up from her nightmare earlier. She hated him seeing her so vulnerable. She hadn't wanted him to realize how affected she had actually been from the attack, it's why she had left New York and returned to Lima in the first place. She'd needed the comfort of familiar surroundings, but had needed to get away.

Getting out of bed she realized there was no use putting it off any longer, she was going to have to face him sooner or later, and she'd rather she had some coffee in her system when she did. Rachel dressed quickly and headed down the hall, hearing the shower on as she passed the bathroom on her way to the kitchen.

Noah had apparently been to the kitchen already, because there was a fresh pot of coffee waiting when she got there. Pouring herself a cup, Rachel headed for the breakfast nook, one of the first areas of the house she'd repaired after moving in.

Rachel was lost in thought when Puck arrived in the kitchen a few minutes later. "Hi" he said while pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"Morning" Rachel replied turning to face him. She could almost see the questions bouncing around his head, she knew what was coming.

"How long have you been having the nightmares?"

Rachel sighed, _well that didn't take long. _"It really doesn't matter."

She saw his eyes narrow and his face grow hard.

"The hell it doesn't" he shot back.

"Whatever Noah, drop it, it's none of your business. You haven't been around for the last year and half, I'm doing just fine on my own"

She could see him unraveling, he was furious, she could see it in his eyes, in the tension of his jaw, and the stoic stance he took.

"I haven't been around for the last year and a half _Rach_, because you walked out. Just up and left in the middle of the fucking day while I was at fucking work. Do you know what it felt like to come home and see all of your things gone, you gone, without so even so much as a fucking note!"

He was screaming at her, he had never screamed at her like this before.

"I don't see why it matters Noah." She screamed right back, standing up and stalking over to grab her car keys, "You didn't follow me, you didn't come after me, so why the hell do you car now?"

Walking out the front door to her car, she heard him follow her. Just as she was closing the door she heard him yell to her from the front porch.

"Of course I fucking care Rachel. I'm your fucking husband!"


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I am overwhelmed at the amount of people adding this story to their alerts. You guys are awesome. But would it kill you to review, seriously reviews are amazing, they're addictive. You don't HAVE to review, but I will love you if you do :) Also, I probably won't be adding chapter 5 until Sunday; I have 2 exams on Saturday that I really have to study for. Sorry in advance, but I'll make it an extra great chapter because I feel bad.**

**Disclaimer: Puck hasn't moved to Canada to sleep in my bed so I guess I still don't own Glee**

Puck watched her car as it drove down the street, turned a corner, and disappeared from view. Dragging a hand over his head he headed back inside. Grabbing his coffee mug off the counter he headed over to the nook Rachel had been sitting in just a few minutes ago. He curled up onto the side that had the window seat and wished he had something a hell of a lot stronger than coffee right now. But he knew he had to deal with this without ending up on a three day bender like he had when Rachel had first left New York.

He really hadn't wanted to argue with her again this morning, but he was a little (_very_) pissed off. Clearly she wasn't doing anything to get over what had happened to her. She had just run, away from her life, away from him, and she was so far from dealing with it.

Puck contemplated going to look for her for a second before dismissing that idea. _Despite your recent actions to the contrary, you're still a stud and you don't go chasing after anyone Puckerman!_

Or at least that's what he told himself, because the truth that it was because Rachel would really not appreciate it made him wonder when he'd lost his balls.

_

After driving around Lima aimlessly for an hour, Rachel found herself in the parking lot at McKinley. She's not really surprised that she ended up here. Since moving back to Lima, Rachel spent almost all of her time either here, or at her house. Since going back home is not an option right now, not with her infuriating husband around, the high school is really the only other place she knows.

She ends up walking the halls, reliving her high school days. As a freshman and even a sophomore, Rachel had been an outcast, completely misunderstood and mercilessly picked on. Things changed after the glee club settled down towards the end of sophomore year. For the most part everyone became pretty good friends, they all hung out outside of school, and it had been fun. She missed those sorts of carefree days.

Walking into the auditorium, Rachel climbed the steps onto the stage and looked out at the rows of empty seats. Feeling the tears as they start to track down her cheeks, she wipes at them furiously and lay down in the center of the stage.

_The first day of senior year Rachel. One more year and you'll be off in New York, taking Broadway by storm in no time. _

_Rachel lay in the middle of the stage humming Taking Chances and dreaming of her final year at McKinley and of her future that was almost within her reach. She was so lost in thought she hadn't noticed that someone had come into the auditorium until Puck was lying next to her._

"_Do the beams hold some sort of mystical meaning Berry?"_

_Rachel rolled her eyes and turned her head to face him "No Noah, I'm just thinking, right here is where I do my best thinking" _

"_Thinking about what?"_

"_Taking Nationals this year, and then heading off to New York in the fall. I've been waiting 17 years to get there." Her voice wavered a little, giving into the nerves she'd been ignoring, wondering if she were good enough. She acted like she was confident, but she had doubts like any teenager._

_As if reading her mind, Puck looked her in the eyes and said "You're going to do great out there Rachel, they don't stand a chance"_

_That moment in the auditorium was when they had become inseparable; best friends from that point on._

_

When Puck went back to the counter to refill his coffee mug for the third time that morning, he noticed a piece of paper hanging on Rachel's refrigerator door. Putting his mug back down on the counter, he grabbed the paper of the fridge to take a look. Reading it he realized it was her to do list for fixing up the house; things she had finished neatly crossed out.

Figuring he needed something to do to keep himself occupied until Rachel decided she was ready to talk to him again; Puck scanned the list to see if there was anything he could work on. He finally decided to strip and stain the kitchen cabinets, providing she had already bought the supplies.

Finding the paint stripper, sand paper and stain in the separate garage, Puck grabbed some tools and headed to the kitchen to start taking down the cupboard doors.

When he finally got the doors down and was busy stripping the old green paint off of them, Puck tried to tune out the rest of the world and focus solely on the work. He also failed miserably.

_Rachel always got a little bit crazy (well more so than usual) whenever she was about to begin a new role. He loved her but she was driving him nuts, practicing songs and dialogue at all times. This time however seemed even worse than her previous bouts of pre show nerves. She was extremely fidgety, and he would find her awake in the middle of the night staring at the ceiling of their bedroom biting her cute bottom lip in worry. He'd chalked it up to this being her first lead role._

_After a particularly rough day in the department, Puck offered to stay behind and finish off some of the paperwork that needed to be done; partly because he was the new guy and he wanted to work his ass off to prove himself, but also because this way he wouldn't have to listen to Rachel singing all evening long. He wasn't a jerk though, so he called her and let her know he'd be running late, he didn't want her to worry about him as well._

He lived with the guilt every single day. Puck knew that if he had just gone home that night like everyone else, he could have protected Rachel, nothing would have happened. She wouldn't have left him alone in New York.

Puck hadn't rushed after her when she left because deep down, he was punishing himself for not being there, for not recognizing the signs that there was something truly wrong.

Fed up with his trip down memory lane, Puck grabbed his iPod from his rental parked in the driveway. Putting the ear buds in, he put the volume up as high as he could stand it, hoping it would drown out the vision of Rachel gagged, tied to their bed and bleeding from the slashes on her left side.

_

Rachel woke up disoriented, unsure of where she was, and extremely sore. Sitting up she realized she'd fallen asleep on the stage in the auditorium, dreams of the better days in high school letting her sleep better than she had in a long time.

She glanced down at her watch, it was 3 in the afternoon, and she'd left the house almost 5 hours ago. It was past time to head back and deal with Noah.

When she arrived back at the house, Rachel noticed the door to the garage open, closing her car door she walked up to the garage, inside was Noah, furiously sanding down her kitchen cabinet doors. He was shirtless and covered with a thin sheen of sweat. Rachel was stunned; he was even more muscular than he'd been when she left New York. The muscles in his arms flexed as he sanded down the wood cabinets, his back tightening and flexing with each move he made. Rachel stood transfixed in the doorway.

She felt a rush of heat to her core, and knew she was flushed from head to toe. _Damn it, why did he still have this effect on her! She was furious with him; she didn't need to feel like she wanted to jump his bones at any minute. Oh hell. _Rachel finally snapped out of her trance and turned to head into the house; she did not need Noah realizing she was staring.

_

Puck had this squirming feeling that he was being watched. When it didn't go away after a minute, he turned around to see Rachel heading for the front door. He yanked out his head phones and jogged up behind her.

"Rachel"

She turned to face him and he saw she was pink, he wondered if she'd been outside this whole time, it looked like she'd gotten a little sun.

"Hi Noah" she finally replied back.

"I guess we have to talk don't we?"

Rachel just nodded in response. Puck gestured for her to go ahead of him. Walking up the steps of the porch, Puck was jolted with a shot of pure lust at the sight of her ass in a pair of tight blue jeans swaying enticingly in front of him as she walked. He was so distracted he almost walked into her when she stopped abruptly.

Looking over her shoulder towards the house, Puck saw the piece of paper taped to the door.

_Becky's mine. I love her._

"Fucking hell!"


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey everyone! I'm so sorry for the long delay. First I was studying for my exams, but then I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter. I've re-written most of it a few times and I'm still not completely happy with how it turned out. I do hope you enjoy it anyways, reviews would be lovely! I hope to have the next chapter out later this week.**

**Disclaimer: Glee isn't mine, I just borrow it sometimes.**

Puck ripped the note off of Rachel's front door, unconsciously crumpling it when his hand fisted, before he gently nudged Rachel through the front door. Stepping inside behind her, he closed the door and headed straight for the kitchen. He'd been working outside in the hot weather for a few hours and he was fucking thirsty. Opening the fridge Puck grabbed a bottle of water, and kicked the door closed before turning around and heading back to the front entrance.

Rachel was still standing there, exactly where he'd left her, staring straight ahead with her right arm wrapped around her stomach and her hand firmly clutching her left side.

"Rachel" he said stepping to stand in front of her. Her eyes were glassy and he could tell that she was seeing right through him. Having learnt his mistake from the night before, Puck gently grasped her shoulders repeating "Rachel"

_

_He moved from the bottom of the bed to her side "You know love; it wasn't very nice of you to turn me down every time I asked you out. We were always supposed to be together." The voice whispered as she felt the sharp sting of a blade slice through her skin; recognition coursed through her as she felt the sticky warmth of her blood dripping down her side. Alec._

"Rachel"

Her mind slowly pulled back to the present and she realized that she was standing in front of Noah, his hands on her shoulders and a concerned look on his face. Warmth spread out from where his hands were placed on her shoulders and the panic from her flashback subsided.

"Sorry Noah, I'm fine"

She saw him take a deep breath "You have no reason to apologize to me Rachel"

The look on his face was a mixture of concern and frustration. And although deep down she was grateful he'd come to her so she didn't have to face this alone, but him being here was just as hard. Rachel had left New York behind because she didn't want Noah to see how weak she had become. Sure they'd been living together for 2 years, and married for one before the attack, so he'd seen her vulnerable. But she'd fallen so far from the Rachel Berry everyone knew that she'd felt ashamed. Running had been her only option.

She stepped back, his arms falling off her shoulders and back to his sides. Rachel couldn't let herself depend on him; she had to learn how to face this on her own. And if she couldn't, she didn't want Noah around to see her fall apart.

"We should call Officer Green" she said, registering the flash of hurt she saw on his face that told her he was upset she wasn't letting him in, wasn't talking to him.

"Screw that. Officer Green is a jackass; I'll call up Reid Park, an old buddy from baseball and see if he can stop by."

_

After his phone call with Reid, who agreed to stop by in an hour, he walked into the kitchen to see Rachel sitting back in the window seat of the breakfast nook. She was staring out the window to the forest that ran along that edge of her property. Her profile was outlined by the setting sun, and he was struck by how peaceful she looked in that moment. There was no panic, no fear; she looked so damn beautiful just sitting there.

Back in New York, there would be days he would come home from work to find her lying in the chair near the window, strumming his guitar he'd taught her how to play, and singing quietly. He saw how in those moments she looked so at peace with the world. She had that look on her face right now, but he knew soon the fear and the panic would return. The very thought made his chest ache; he wished he could take those feelings away for her, so she was always so at peace.

As if sensing his gaze, Rachel turned towards him, a silent moment between the two of them. "You still wear your ring" she said finally gesturing to his left hand.

He looked down to see the gold band on his finger, "Ya I do"

The silent "_You don't_" stretched between them, neither one saying anything more. Puck shifted his weight from foot to foot. Both were dreading this conversation. The _where do we go from here _conversation that they needed to have soon.

Finally breaking the silence, Puck told her "Reid will be here in an hour, he'll help and we'll get to the bottom of this. I promise."

"Thank you for helping Noah"

Puck just nodded his head. "I'm going to go take a shower" he said before retreating down the hall towards the guest room.

_

After Noah disappeared down the hall, Rachel stood up and walked to the fridge to look for something to make for dinner. Looking inside she realized she was definitely going to have to do some grocery shopping tomorrow now that Noah was staying at the house. Grabbing some chicken breasts from the meat drawer, she kicked the fridge door shut and grabbed a knife and cutting board placing it all on the island in her kitchen.

Looking around at all the missing cupboard doors she reminded herself to thank Noah for the help. Rachel grabbed a wok, placing it on the stove and adding a little olive oil to the pan, before heading back to the island to cut the chicken into cubes and adding them to the pan.

Rachel had moved on to chopping vegetables to add to the chicken for a stir-fry, when she heard the bathroom door open, and saw Noah exit the bathroom and pad down the hall to the guest room. Rachel drew in a quick breath when she grazed her finger with the knife.

She had been so distracted by his muscular torso that she failed to pay attention to what she had been doing. _He's even more muscular than I remember, how is that even possible. _Rachel felt a corresponding warmth spread through her at the thought of Noah's muscular body. She walked over to the sink to run cold water over the little cut she'd gotten, before returning to chopping and adding vegetables to the pan in an effort to distract herself from Noah's presence.

_

When Puck came back into the kitchen, Rachel was just putting food on the table.

"It smells great" he said as a way of announcing his presence. He walked over to the table as Rachel was sitting down and took a seat himself.

"Thanks, it's just stir fry, I don't have much in the way of groceries right now" she replied, not meeting his eyes.

Nothing more was said as they both started into their meals in a not quite comfortable silence. Puck noticed that while Rachel did eat, mostly she just picked at her meal with her fork. He felt like telling her she needed to eat, to take care of herself, but they honestly did not need to get into another fight today, so he kept his mouth shut. But he would bring it up soon; she needed to start taking care of herself again.

Just as they were finishing up dinner, there was a knock at the door. Assuming it was Reid, Puck went to answer the door while Rachel tidied up the kitchen. Opening the door, he stepped out onto the porch to talk with Reid.

"Hey Reid" He said reaching out to grab him into a hug.

"Hey man! It's been forever dude."

"Too long, I agree"

They jumped right into business as Puck described the situation with Rachel's student Becky, and the note that had shown up on Rachel's door this afternoon. Reid promised to look over the copies of the letters Officer Green had taken from Rachel on Friday, and took the crumpled note that they had found on the door. Reid promised to call him in the morning after his shift.

"Thanks man" Puck said reaching up to shake Reid's hand.

"No problem Puckerman."

As Reid drove off, Rachel walked out onto the porch. "That was quick" she said looking over at him.

"Reid's working the night shift at the station tonight; he didn't have a lot of time"

The night had turned cool, and Rachel wrapped her arms around herself to keep off the chill. They stood there, side by side, on the porch for a few minutes, soaking up the silence.

Finally Rachel spoke, "It's been a long day Noah, and I'm going to bed. I'll see you in the morning"

Not wanting this opportunity to pass him by, Puck reached out to touch her arm as she turned to move inside. He took a step towards her, and heard her breath catch.

"Goodnight Rach" he whispered before placing a kiss on her forehead. Rachel stood rooted on the spot for a moment, before her eyes widened and she rushed inside. And Puck sat down on the porch swing to collect his thoughts.

_

Rachel tossed and turned in bed for an hour, re-living that moment out on the porch with Noah. With a sigh she slipped out of bed and padded over to her dresser. Opening the jewelry box placed on top, she pulled out the long chain she'd put her wedding ring on when she had first left New York. She fiddled with the ring for a moment before slipping the chain over her neck.

Climbing back into bed, Rachel fell asleep quickly, her hands clutching the ring she hadn't worn in a year and a half.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I know I know, you all hate me. I'm very sorry this update took so long but real life got in the way. I started my summer job and so it's been a little hectic this past week. Anyways here it is finally! I apologize for not replying to your reviews for last chapter, but you'll get amazing replies if you review this chapter ;) A special shout out to Detzer and sweetcaroline1986, your reviews always make my day. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: After last night I reaaaally wish I owned Glee, but alas I do not.**

By Monday morning, Rachel was ready to pull her hair out. Sunday had started off relatively calm; waking up to her cat Maxx nudging her chin, she had relaxed in bed for a while (okay, so she was avoiding Noah, don't judge). When she finally got out of bed it was nearing 10 am, the latest she had stayed in bed in a long time.

Once she made it into the kitchen, after showering and getting dressed, Rachel saw Noah and his friend Reid sitting at the table drinking coffee and pouring over the letters that Becky had received. Grabbing a cup of coffee, she joined them at the table and the three of them had discussed the situation with her student. They decided that Puck would come in for a meeting with Becky on Monday if the girl agreed, and Reid would continue working through the letters to see if they held any clues to the identity of the author. This is when Puck and Reid decided to take a trip down memory lane; Rachel stood at the counter pretending to contemplate her to do list, while actually listening to the guys talk about their time on the McKinley baseball team.

When Reid finally leaves, Puck joins Rachel in the garage where she had escaped to, to keep working on the kitchen cabinet doors. They work in companionable silence for the rest of the morning. Except Rachel can't forget the feeling of Noah's lips grazing her forehead, and Puck can't help but stare at the long gold chain around Rachel's neck, that's disappearing between her cleavage that's on display from her v-neck t-shirt. And he thinks it's weird, because she's never worn a lot of jewelry.

When Sunday night rolls around, Puck has insisted on going with her to the grocery store, followed her inside when she was taking a break from the cabinet doors to strip wallpaper inside, and cooked her dinner. All while staring at her, the ENTIRE time. Or at least that's what it felt like to Rachel. He's acting like the Noah he used to be over two years ago, except even more attentive. And Rachel goes to bed confused and frustrated.

So yeah, by the time Monday morning comes around, she's ready to get the hell away from this house and get into her office for some much needed alone time.

"Don't forget –"

"I know Noah, just relax. I will call as soon as I talk to Becky." Rachel said rolling her eyes at him. He didn't understand why she was so frustrated with him. Okay, so maybe he'd reminded her a few (six) times that he was expecting a call as soon as she'd spoken to her student. But it was important that Becky talked to someone who knew how to ask the right questions. Being a trained police officer Puck was the perfect man for the job. It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that he wanted to keep an eye on Rachel.

The past two years had changed her more than he had realized. And not just her outward appearance, but her entire outlook. She was no longer the carefree girl he had married, and he couldn't shake the all consuming guilt that surrounded him when he realized he was very much to blame for that.

After Rachel had left for work Puck walked back to the kitchen and poured himself another cup of coffee. He dragged a hand roughly over his face and let out a deep breath. Being around her again was messing with his head. For example, she would be in the kitchen drinking a glass of water and his mind would flash back to their old apartment, her dancing around the kitchen. It was slowing driving him out of his mind.

He clearly still wanted her; Puck didn't think that would ever change. He just knew he couldn't have her, and he definitely didn't deserve her. So he'd help her get through this problem with Becky, and then he'd leave. It was only fair to her; she hadn't wanted him here in the first place.

Frustrated with his decision, even though he knew it was the right one, he slammed his empty coffee cup down on the counter and stalked to the bathroom, may as well get ready so that when Rachel called he could head straight into McKinley.

Rachel's day had turned to hell. Becky had agreed to talk to Noah about the letters after Rachel assured the girls that he was an old friend, a police officer, and he really wanted to help. They'd just finished the meeting in her office; Noah had asked her if she had noticed anyone paying particularly close attention to her, what guys were showing interest in her, when the letters had started exactly. After the first few minutes, Rachel had started to feel a panic attack rising, so she excused herself. Standing in the hall outside her office, she forced herself to calm down and told herself that they would catch the author of those letters before this progressed any further.

In the time that had passed since her attack, Rachel had come to realize what an idiot she'd been. Hiding those letters from Noah had been by far the most careless move she'd ever made. Had she told him about the letters there was a good chance this whole mess could have been avoided. They would still be blissfully happy in New York City, Rachel starring in The Phantom of the Opera and Noah working with the NYPD. But her own stupidity left her barely holding on to her life after fleeing back to the town she had grown up in, unhappy and alone. Despite her adamant protests that he was not welcome in her home, Rachel found herself realizing that she had missed Noah. And that, that was the most terrifying part of this whole situation.

"Are you okay Rachel"

Principal Figgins' voice snapped her out of her thoughts. He was standing in front of her with a worried expression. Rachel took a deep breath to steady herself.

"I'm fine sir. Just letting Noah talk to Becky in peace."

Figgins looked at her for a few seconds before raising his eyebrow and asking "Really? Because I was just walking up the hall when you practically ran out of your office; I saw your face, you were this close to full-fledged panic. Rachel I needed a guidance counselor and someone to run the glee club, so I've let this slide, but you're running from something. I don't know what happened that resulted in you coming back to Lima, but I can see you're barely keeping it together."

Rachel shook her head, since when was Figgins so perceptive? She opened her mouth to argue, but Figgins cut her off.

"Look I want you to stay, you're great with the kids in glee but you can't help these kids until you help yourself. So if you want to keep your job as the counselor here I'm going to have to insist you talk to someone about your problems"

Rachel was stunned; she thought she'd been successfully hiding her panic attacks. But here Figgins was telling her he knew something was wrong. The only thing running through Rachel's mind was how much she needed this job. Not only because fixing up her house was costing her an arm and a leg, but truly because it gave her something to do, something to distract her from the fear. Figuring honesty at this point was the best way to go; Rachel told the principal just that.

" – so I hope you know how much I need this job, and if it means going to talk to someone about my fears then I guess I'm willing to do that. But sir, I'm not sure how much it will help" she tells him, barely keeping her anger in check. _I'm fine!_

Figgins nodded and turned to walk back towards his office, calling over his shoulder "It'll help more than you realize Rachel"

Puck watched Rachel walk back into her office with a dazed expression on her face, just as Becky stood up to leave. She sat down behind her desk and placed her hands gently on top of it. Before he even has a chance to ask her what's wrong she's talking and it's almost like having the old Rachel back, if she didn't sound so terrified.

"He wants me to seek out professional counseling, to talk about the issues that have been so much a part of my life for the past year and a half. Who does he think he is? I know how to do my job, I'm helping these kids; I'm helping Becky! But does he see that? No. I don't need to talk to anyone, I've been doing fine just on my own!"

She ends her little speech so indignantly that she slams her hand down on her desk. Puck can see she's furious.

"Who?"

Rachel looked up startled, almost like she had forgotten he was there, and maybe she had. "Principal Figgins. He says if I don't talk to someone about what happened then I can't keep my job"

"Good!" tumbles out of his mouth before his brain caught up enough to tell him that was probably a stupid thing to say. Rachel's eyes snapped to meet his, and he just knew they were headed for another huge fight. _May as well go all in Puckerman._

"Quite bluntly Rachel, that's bullshit. You're not doing fine at all. You ran, and came back here to Lima to hide out. You work hard, and you spend all your free time fixing up an old house to fucking keep yourself from falling apart. That's surviving Rachel; you're not doing fuck all to get over what happened! So yeah, good! You need to talk to someone, fucking anyone and start to deal!"

Rachel's face was flushed bright red, and the glare she was sending him would send chills down anyone's spine.

"Well excuse me. I didn't realize this was any of your business Puck!" He flinched at his high school nickname; Rachel hadn't called him that in over 5 years. She must be really pissed.

"I'm doing the best I can. I was tied to my bed and gagged by some psycho who I rejected while I was at NYU! He taunted me with letters for months. And when I was tied to _our _bed Noah, he took a knife and slowly sliced my skin open, telling me I had to pay for not seeing we were meant to be together. Told me we were finally going to be a real couple, that he was going to make me his! So yeah, I'm surviving because that's really the best I can do right now. But I don't need to spill my guts to some stranger, it won't make all of this just disappear!"

Hearing her more or less blame him for what happened made the guilt that had been his best friend for the last year and a half expand a hundred-fold. Sighing, he stood up and headed for the door.

"Fine Rach, I don't know what else to do" he said before slipping out the door. He walked down the familiar halls of McKinley High trying to outrun the image of Rachel tied up and bleeding, and failing miserably.

He was dragged out of the past abruptly though when he arrived in the parking lot only to find the tires on his rental slashed, and a note under the wiper blade that read "Leave town, she's mine".

_Well fuck. This shit needs to stop happening._

**A/N 2: I promise you won't have to wait as long for the next update. Go review and it'll be up even quicker! Also feel free to follow me on twitter (/shannonphenix) I often update there when I'm writing.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I'm so sorry that this update took so long to get out. There was an unfortunate incident with my laptop that I'd rather not talk about, but that resulted in me having to re-write most of this chapter. Of course during that re-write the chapter changed direction from my original idea. A big thanks to sassy26 and 2looney for talking me off the ledge and for helping out with this chapter. Now I'm going to do that thing where I entice you to review by promising a Puckleberry oneshot to my 100****th**** reviewer (I'd let whoever it is know and they could provide me with a prompt if they so choose). Anyways here's the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: Glee owns my ass, but I don't own it.**

* * *

By the time Puck collapsed into the guest bed at Rachel's house that night he was exhausted; the day had gone from bad to worse after he'd found his car and the note on the windshield. When Puck had gone back to Rachel's office he had found her pouring over the letters to Becky again. She was so focused she hadn't noticed him until he sat down in the chair directly across from her. He tried to deflect her questions about why he was back, just asking when she would be done work, but Rachel had always been able to see through him, and she quickly realized something was wrong.

Puck relented and explained to her how he had found his rental car and showed her the new note. While Puck could tell Rachel was scared she seemed to be taking this latest incident in stride. He sensed her fear was more to do with Becky than panic over her past. He still decided to keep an eye on her though knowing that dealing with this was a far cry from easy for her; the stress was bound to catch up eventually.

Puck on the other hand, he was scared shitless. The latest note had not specified Becky as the target, and although he understood that Becky was undoubtedly who this psycho had meant Rachel was way too involved in the situation and he didn't want to see her hurt again.

After talking with Rachel in her office, Puck spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around McKinley as he waited for her, seeing as his rental was out of commission for a while. He was invaded with memories of his senior year; he's spent most of it with Rachel, they had been best friends and practically inseparable. It was almost painful to remember the happier, carefree times now after all they'd been through, so Puck headed for the gymnasium, intent on distracting himself from the suffocating past, his whole past with Rachel seemed stifling these days.

Arriving in the gym he had spent many hours in during his high school years here at McKinley Puck grabbed a basketball from the old (still disorganized) storage room off the main gym. A hard work out, he thought was the best way to push the past back to, well the past.

After several minutes of running, dribbling the ball and taking shots Puck had successfully worked up a sweat, but the memories were no closer to fading. In a fit of frustration Puck threw the basketball at the gym wall hard, sinking to the floor and staring up through the basketball net as he let one particular memory wash over him.

_Puck was high off their first win of the season and he undoubtedly had a huge grin on his face while in the locker room. Fortunately his wasn't the only smiling face around, the whole team, hell even Coach Tanaka, were grinning like idiots. For a school known for their shitfest sports teams they had just dominated Carmel High in the first basketball game of the season. Who knew that they we're actually _good_?_

_Puck indulged in some ritual locker room smack talk with his boys while getting dressed. It was nice that things were back to normal. Finn and Puck had mended fences last year and the boys were back to hanging out. They weren't necessarily best friends anymore, no that slot had been filled, but they were pretty damn close._

_After grabbing his gym bag from his locker, he headed through the doors leading back into the gym to see Rachel congratulating Finn, Matt and Mike on their win. He chose to ignore punched in the gut feeling he got from seeing her attention on his best friends. Instead he just stood leaning against the far wall of the gym, his arms crossed nonchalantly over his chest._

"_You need a ride home Rach?" he heard Matt ask, just as Rachel looked up to see him across the gym. Taking off at a run towards him, Matt shouted out "I'll take that as a no!" as the three guys started laughing and heading out the exit._

_Expecting Rachel to stop in front of him Puck pushed off from the wall to head towards her, but she never slowed down, instead jumping up into his arms to hug him tightly, and causing him to drop his gym bag to keep from dropping her. _

"_Noah! That was amazing. You were great tonight, you scored so much and you beat Carmel" Rachel shouted as she slid back to the floor and began jumping up and down. (Puck also chose to ignore the tingling in his hands from where he'd held her hips steady)_

"_Easy there killer, you want me to go deaf?" he teased, smirking as her grin turned to a frown. Or he was smirking until she punched him in the arm (hard too, who knew a midget could pack such a punch). _

"_Jesus Rach, I was kidding" Puck told her, discreetly rubbing his arm. That shit hurt._

_Puck ended up teaching her how to shoot a free throw, hoping it would calm her down some before he took her home. He stood behind her, showing her how to bend her legs and how to hold the ball before stepping away and letting her try. She missed (5 times in a row) before he demonstrated again how to hold the ball and flick your wrist._

_When Rachel still missed the basket, Puck moved back in behind her and placed his hands over hers. Going through the motions with her, they threw the ball together. Puck watched it sail into the net, and smirked before looking down at Rachel. _

_Instead of watching the ball go through the hoop, Rachel was looking up at him, her breath coming in short gasps, and her chocolate eyes almost black. He found himself thinking (admittedly not for the first time) how beautiful she was, and how plump and kissable her lips looked, and before he knew it he had bent down and was touching his lips to hers, and she was turning towards him, snaking her hands around his neck and deepening the kiss._

_They both jumped back at the same time, Rachel started smoothing out the non-existent wrinkle in her shirt, while Puck cleared his throat and ran his hands down his face._

"_Let's get you home Rach"_

_It wasn't the first kiss they'd shared as 'just friends', and it wouldn't be the last either._

Puck stood up from his spot on the floor, trying not to be upset by the happy memories of his and Rachel's past. But with their screwed up present, pretty much everything these days was upsetting these days.

Frustrated with the whole situation, he headed out the gym doors back into the hallways of McKinley, setting out in the direction of Rachel's office. _She has to be done for the day now right?_

* * *

The sun was setting as Puck pulled Rachel's car into the driveway at her house. Turns out no, she hadn't been done for the day; Monday's meant there was glee rehearsal which apparently ran until 6 in the evening when Rachel was coaching.

* * *

By the time they had grabbed Rachel's stuff from her office, stopped for dinner at Rose's Diner in downtown Lima, they were late getting back to the house. Even so, the last thing Rachel expected to see was an unfamiliar car on the street in front of her house and the silhouette of a strangely familiar female figure on her front porch.

Rachel could see the woman cross her arms over her chest as she slid from the passenger seat of her car and closed the door behind her. She heard Noah mutter "_fuck_" under his breath as he headed up the drive. He reached the front porch before she did, and as she was climbing the stairs she instantly recognized the stern voice of Hannah Puckerman as she addressed her son "Noah Puckerman, how dare you come to town and not come to see me. From what I hear you've been in Lima for over three days now and I have not heard one peep from you"

"Christ Ma, I'm here to help Rachel, I would have called you before I left."

Rachel's blood ran unexpectedly cold at the thought of Noah leaving Lima. He had become such a regular fixture in her life again over these past few days that she hadn't even thought about what would happen when everything was sorted out. She'd grown to depend on him, one of the very reasons she had left New York in the first place, Rachel didn't depend on anyone but herself.

She followed Noah and Hannah into the house before kicking off her shoes and heading for the kitchen. Grabbing a bottle of water she headed back to her half renovated living room before greeting Hannah, who had been so engrossed in her lecturing of Noah that she had barely noticed Rachel.

"Rachel dear it's nice to see you finally, how long have you been back in Lima now?"

Ignoring the silent jab and the flash of hurt in Hannah's gaze, Rachel replied with a simple "It's great to see you too Hannah"

Before she knew it, Rachel found herself seated next to Noah on the drop-clothe clad couch while Hannah stood before them glaring.

"Now listen up you two. I know your situation is beyond complicated. You never had to face any real issues as a couple before Rachel was attacked. And I'll admit that I don't know the details of the attack, but I do know that it wasn't pretty, but instead of turning to each other and helping each other cope, you both turned tail and hid. That's no way to deal with this and you both know it. Rachel you went through a horrible experience, but you ran away and cut off your life from everybody you knew. Noah, I know your coping mechanisms so I have no doubt you spent the first month after Rachel left in some dive bar before cleaning yourself up and spending the rest of your free time at the gym instead"

She paused then to glare at them both. Rachel was too stunned to say much of anything but when Noah tried to insert his 2 cents worth, Hannah held up her hand, effectively shutting him up, before continuing.

"You are married! That's not something you just throw away. It's clear you still care for each other; Noah you came all this way to help her, and Rachel you let him in again. But you've got to do something to fix this before it gets any worse. Noah, I've always wanted you to be with a lovely Jewish girl, now that you've found Rachel, don't give that up. Besides, I want grandbabies soon!"

A small smile spread across her face with that last statement while Rachel and Puck just sat there stunned silent by her rant.

"Well I must be going now dear, I have to work in the morning, goodnight you two"

Rachel snapped out of it when Hannah was heading for the front door, she stood up and followed her to the door saying "I'll walk you out Hannah"

* * *

The woman was a human tornado.

Puck waged an internal debate about whether or not he should follow after Rachel. She'd walked his mother out to her car 20 minutes ago and was now curled up on the swinging bench on the porch. His crazy fucking mother had really managed to stir things up during her short visit.

When Puck had first made his decision to come to back to Lima and help out Rachel, he'd had every intention of helping her with her Becky and making sure she was okay before heading back to New York. He had a life there; _they'd _had a life there. And when she had picked up and left Puck had gone down a self-destructive path, well on his way to rock bottom. But Rachel had made her choice; and while they hadn't legally ended their marriage, Puck hadn't wanted to complicate her life any further by sticking around.

That plan was fucked. He knew that the minute she'd opened the door; she may not be the Rachel he'd known, but she was still _his _Rach. He knew now that he'd do anything to have her again; so unless Rachel told him to go to hell, Puck was sticking around and he was going to fight for her, for them. So maybe his mother wasn't a complete fucking nutcase.

Puck realized that they needed to have at least some conversation before Rachel reverted back into her shell. _Fuck I could use a drink. _Puck took a deep breath and squared his shoulders, _don't go there Puckerman, Rachel doesn't need that shit._

* * *

Rachel sat on the swing outside contemplating Hannah's big speech. She couldn't deny that she still cared about Noah; that was absolutely true. She had realized just how much when she heard him mention leaving Lima after the mess with Becky was resolved. It had been like a punch to the gut. But could they really fix what she had broken by running away? Rachel feared that they were too far gone to get back to a place where they trusted one another completely again.

"Why did you run?" Noah asked quietly, joining her on the bench swing and startling Rachel out of her inner debate.

She was quiet for a minute, not sure that this was a conversation she wanted to have right now. Unconsciously playing with the chain around her neck which held her (hidden) wedding band, she took a deep breath before finally deciding that now was a good a time as any to have talk about this.

"For the same reason you didn't follow me; I don't show weakness to anybody, at least I didn't then"

"Rach, being angry, or scared, or hurt after what you went through, that's not weakness"

Rachel nodded, "I know that, but depending on you to pick up the pieces afterwards, that is. I needed to do it on my own"

Noah grabbed her hand causing Rachel to turn to him in alarm, her hand tingling under his.

"I guess I understand why you felt you needed to leave. You've always had an independent streak, and I love that about you. But you know that you could have stayed, we could have picked up the pieces together."

He was gazing at her with such an intense caring look in his eyes that Rachel had to look away. She contemplated what Noah had just said for a long minute, before realizing once again how stupid she had been.

Slowly, she nodded before turning to face him once again, "I know that now"


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: A huge thanks to 2looney for looking this over and telling me it was not complete crap. Also I still plan to write a oneshot for my 100****th**** reviewer (I'm a glutton for punishment apparently) so go REVIEW! Please?**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except for maybe an incredibly insane obsession for this show.**

* * *

On Tuesday Puck and Reid met to come up with a plan to find the person behind the notes to Becky. It's a pretty simple plan actually. Puck, after talking with Principal Figgins, is going to up the amount of security cameras at McKinley, adding them so that they cover all areas of the hallways. While the whole process will be time consuming the area nearest Becky's locker will be handled first. Meanwhile Reid was going to run the list of names Puck had gotten from Becky during their brief meeting the day before. Puck and Reid decide it is best to install the new security cameras after school hours so as to not alert the students, especially the one they are looking to catch.

While they are sitting at Rose's Diner having coffee and discussing the plan, Puck's cell phone started ringing on the table next to his coffee. Looking at the screen he saw that it was Rachel calling from her office at McKinley.

"Rachel, what's wrong?" he said, knowing she wouldn't call just to chat, not anymore.

He heard Rachel sigh on the other end of the line before saying "Becky found another note in her locker this morning"

"Fuck me" Puck bit out dragging his hand over his face. He seriously needed to catch this guy, this was getting ridiculous.

"Language Noah!" Rachel shouted, and Puck's face lit up as Reid looked on curiously from across the table.

"I'll be there in 20 minutes; Reid and I are just finishing up at the diner"

Ending the call he and Reid finalized their plans before paying the bill and heading their separate ways. Puck had Rachel's car today, having dropped her off at the high school this morning before heading off to take care of a few things before meeting Reid. As he drove back towards McKinley his thoughts strayed to the glimpse of the old Rachel he'd gotten on the phone minutes earlier. It was moments like that when he realized that perhaps she wasn't as far gone as she believed she was. He understood that there was no way Rachel would ever be the same person she'd been before the attack, hell he would never be that person either, but it gave him hope that there was still a chance they could work things out.

And damn if he didn't still want her. He consciously spent the majority of his time trying not to drag her to the closest flat surface and just have her. He ached constantly with the _need _to be with her again, to be her _husband _again. But he loved her (of course he still loved her) enough to know that physical intimacy was not the best way to get her back, in fact it would probably send her running for the hills, again.

* * *

Noah doesn't stay long, just has a quick talk with Becky before making a copy of the most recent letter. He spends an hour wandering the halls of McKinley mapping out where the new security cameras need to be set up; Rachel knows this because she saw him wander past her office twice while staring at the ceiling.

He pops back in to tell her he's heading out to speak to the company that installed the original security system at the school. Once he's gone Rachel stretches back in her chair and comes to the realization that her and Noah, they're acting like a couple again. Communicating and depending on each other (well mostly her depending on him) and it should freak her out, really it should. They never really had that to begin with. They were in love and would do anything for each other, but they never had too because they didn't want to have to depend on the other. Rachel finds she kind of likes knowing that Noah's here, and he's here to help her in whatever way he can; it's more comforting than she would have thought.

Later that afternoon Rachel finds herself once again staring at the phone in her office having a mini panic attack, and afraid to pick up the phone and dial. She feels like the fact that the first phone call, the one she made to Noah, didn't turn out as bad as she's thought should make this one easier to make, but it doesn't. She's been doing absolutely fine all on her own. She's dealing, really she is. _Liar._

She's about 2 seconds from just getting up and leaving (she'll call tomorrow, for sure) when Noah walks in. He takes one look at her panicked expression and he's behind her, his hand resting on her shoulder and giving it a light squeeze. She shouldn't find it odd that she almost instantly calms down; he's always had that influence on her before. So she takes a deep breath, picks up the phone, and dials.

"Dr. Ginette Robins' office"

* * *

By Wednesday Rachel is pretty much cursing the fact that Noah is too stubborn to stay in like, a hotel or with his mother, or basically anywhere that wasn't her house. She's perfectly aware that she pretty much broke them when she left New York for Lima last year, and she'd been able to deal with that when he was far away in New York. And then he'd shown up on her doorstep all caring, and understanding and _ripped_ and it had Rachel thinking that maybe, just maybe, she hadn't been dealing at all. With any of it.

Deep down she missed him, and when he was here, invading her space, she had come to realize that she couldn't run anymore. Maybe they would never get back what they had, but Rachel finally realized that she owed it to herself to at least learn how to start living again. Even if she had to live without Noah.

It did not help her whole "_I must learn to be happy by myself_" plan when Noah was wandering around her house in a pair of jeans that showed off his muscular ass and thighs without being too tight, and a v-neck t-shirt that WAS too tight, well for her sanity anyways. The white shirt clung to his chest and abs, and hugged his biceps, and all around made her hate herself for still wanting him so much. The icing on the cake was his short hair, still wet from the shower. Dear lord she was practically _panting _for him.

As Noah was dropping her off at McKinley later that morning she decided she needed a little break. Some space from his and his crazy lust-inducing body.

"Noah, the therapists' office is just a 15 minute walk from here, I think I'll just walk over for my appointment at 4, you can just pick me up there later. 5 o'clock should be fine."

"You sure Rachel?"

"Yeah I could use the walk" She answered as Puck reached behind her to grab her purse from the backseat and she had a clear view of his arm muscles rippling as he brought her purse forward for her. _Yeah I'm sure._

* * *

By 4:15 that afternoon, Rachel and Dr. Robins were having quite the staring contest; Dr. Robins was winning. The woman apparently found no need to bury the lead as Rachel had barely settled on the couch in her office when Dr. Robins had asked "So what happened in New York Rachel? What sent you running?"

She was going to have a talk with Figgins tomorrow morning, she should have expected he would update Dr. Robins with the information he had (which thankfully was very little). Rachel had frozen, she wanted to talk but the words were caught in her throat. So they were staring, Dr. Robins waiting for an answer, Rachel wanting to give one, but apparently unable to do so.

Meanwhile across town had Puck just finished getting _the Jewish Guilt Trip of the Century._ No seriously, his crazy-ass mother had started bitching him out the minute he'd told her where Rachel was.

"It's not fair that Rachel is the only one trying to fix what happened by talking to a therapist. You need to take responsibility for your part and talk to someone as well. You two can only fix your relationship _together _once you've both faced what happened on your own."

_Fuck that! _Puck had absolutely no intention of seeing some fucking shrink just to have them ask him "And how does that make you feel?" Yeah so he was stereotyping, still didn't mean he was going to see a shrink.

But really he knew his nutcase of a mother had a point. He needed to deal with his shit. So when Puck pulled into the parking lot at the therapists' a half hour before Rachel would be finished, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed a familiar number, but one he hadn't called in a while.

After a few rings, he heard someone pick up on the other end. "Well look who finally decided to call"

* * *

Inside Rachel was finally managing to pull it together, she needed this (more than she'd originally realized). So she took a deep breath and started to talk.

"I started getting these letters, sweet and innocent at first…"

* * *

**I'm a huge bitch, I know. But there will be an update really soon, I already have the next chapter half written.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Okay so maybe I need to look up the definition for soon in a dictionary. Regardless here's the latest chapter! Read away!**

**Disclaimer: Do I really have to keep doing this? Yes? Okay, I don't own Glee (yet)**

* * *

"I started getting these letters, sweet and innocent at first. They would be in my dressing room after my shows, sitting on the floor having been slid under the door"

Rachel paused for a moment to look back to the time when her dreams had been within her reach. Her dreams had changed since high school, they included Noah. It all seemed so distant, so far out of reach these days.

"What did the letters say?"

"The first few were sweet, just complimentary of my talent. They said I had an amazing voice; they seemed like harmless fan mail. But after a few weeks they got…they were-" Rachel pulled in a deep breath to keep her rising panic from reaching her voice, "they became possessive"

Rachel clenched her eyes shut as a powerful shiver ran through her body. Rachel wrapped her arms around her stomach and took several deep breaths in order to get control of her fear. She needed to stay calm and get through this if she was ever going to be able to live with what had happened.

She saw the question in Dr. Robins' eyes before she even asked it, so Rachel elaborated.

"He started saying how much he loved me, and how we were meant to be together. He would still praise my talent and my voice, but since I was no longer starring in a show, instead rehearsing for my new role and so he focused on how we were one another's soul mates" Rachel explained focusing all her energy on holding herself together. _You can get through this Rachel, you can!_

"And how long were you getting these letters?"

"I was getting them for 6 months before he…before…that night" _Keep it together Rachel; you know you need to talk about this._

"Did you tell anyone about the letters?" Dr. Robins asked with a knowing look in her eye.

"No I didn't…I couldn't tell anyone about them. I've always been a strong independent person. I was able to face the things life threw my way; I didn't want to have to depend on anyone else. Especially Noah, I loved him so much and I never wanted him to worry about me the way I worried, the way I worry about him." Rachel explained fighting back the tears that were threatening to spill out.

"You didn't know who was writing the letters, didn't suspect anyone?" Dr. Robins prodded.

Rachel shook her head as the panic she had been fighting for the last half an hour took over and she broke down as images of Alec standing over her with the knife in his hands flooded her. Seeing her obvious panic Dr. Robins backed off, "I think that's enough for today Rachel, we'll continue next time. But this panic, don't fight it all the time, it's your way of dealing with what happened"

Rachel just nodded and stood to leave.

* * *

"Well look who finally decided to call"

"Q I'm really not in the mood for this" Puck answered, dragging his hand over his head and leaning back in his seat.

"Well that's too bad Puck, because we ARE going to have this conversation. A year and a half has gone by since the last time we heard from you and let me tell you I do not find this acceptable in the least. We tried calling and writing you for 6 months Puck, 6 months in which you ignored us outright! What did you do drop off the face of the planet? Disappear to Siberia where no one could find you? Live in a bar on a constant bender?"

Puck listened to Quinn's ranting with a burning in his stomach. He clearly had a lot more than the current state of his relationship with Rachel to feel guilty about.

"I'm sorry Q, I really am, but I was dealing with some stuff"

He could practically see Quinn vibrating with anger on the other end of the line.

"No shit Puckerman! We were there for you guys after Rachel's attack, and then nothing. When she split, went running back to Lima, it's as if you just disappeared!"

Puck really should have realized that Quinn would know about Rachel leaving New York for Lima, she always knows. He heard her sigh and take a breath before she continued in a calmer voice than before.

"Look Puck, I'm pissed because we were worried. We had no idea how you were doing, how Rachel was doing and it's been killing us. So how are you?"

"That's kind of why I'm calling. Is Artie around? He should hear this too"

"He's with the kids, let me get him"

A minute later he heard someone else pick up on the other end of the line before he heard Artie's voice, "Start talking Puckerman, and this better be good"

So that's what he did. He told his best friends how he had fallen apart after he had come home to find Rachel gone. He'd drank himself into a stupor for 3 whole weeks before his boss pulled him out of the bar and told him to stop trying to kill himself. And then he told them all about the current situation he was faced with; Rachel, Becky, the creepy fucked up stalker dude. The whole mess. Surprisingly at the end he felt lighter, better having finally told someone the whole story.

There was a long moment of silence before he heard Artie blow out a long, slow whistle, "That's messed up dude"

Nodding his head Puck agreed "Very"

That's when he noticed the time, 5 o'clock and realized he wasn't sure Rachel would be so happy with him for reaching out to Artie and Quinn. "He guys I have to go, Rachel's going to be out any minute. But hey I'll call again on the weekend, I'm sure there's a whole lot more we have to talk about"

"You better Puck!" Quinn told him.

He laughed then, realizing how stupid he'd been to cut these people out of his life when they'd been through so much together already. "I will".

* * *

By the time his watch hit 5:15pm Puck was starting to get worried, Rachel should have been out 15 minutes earlier.

He knew she was safe inside the therapist's office, at least from the outside world, but he'd seen the panic attacks in the time he'd been here. Puck saw the debilitating fear that could swallow her whole. Making his decision he opened the door and stepped out of the car, kicking the door shut behind him before striding towards the entrance to the medical building. Dr. Robins' offices were on the first floor just to the left of the entrance.

Walking in Puck saw Rachel sitting in the waiting area, pale as a ghost and staring straight ahead with her trembling hands clasped tightly on her lap. In that moment Puck's heart broke for her, he knew how difficult it must be to relive everything she's been so adamant about hiding from.

Leaning down in front of her, Puck placed his hands gently over hers and watched as her gaze slowly began to focus on him, Rachel no doubt dragging herself out of memories from the past.

"Let's get you home Rach"

By 9pm that night Rachel had already headed off to bed and Puck was getting really worried that the therapy may be doing more harm than good. Rachel had said next to nothing since he'd picked her up 4 hours ago.

Puck had made them both dinner and Rachel had struggled to make small talk as they ate their pasta that night. Not able to stand the silence Puck had spent a fair amount of time rambling on about the new security cameras at McKinley and their installation. He was used to not being able to get a word in edge-wise around Rachel so the silence that night had more than unsettled him.

He was really and truly worried about her, and he wondered if she would ever be able to get over what happened to her. He understood that the attack would always be a part of her, she couldn't erase it from her past, but would she ever be able to live with it?

_Get it together Puckerman. _Rachel may not be able to remember how strong she was, but he definitely did. Puck knew that eventually Rachel would push past this funk and come out the other side stronger for it. Her perseverance was one of the things he'd always loved the most about her; Rachel always knew how to take anything the world threw at her. He had to believe that she could move past this, he had to believe that for her, because he didn't think she believed that about herself anymore.

* * *

_Rachel felt the cold wet sting of the blade slicing through her side again as fear coursed through her._ You're dreaming Rachel, wake up! _"You were supposed to love me. That's okay, we'll be together now" _

Rachel was aware she was having a nightmare, progress at least. As she was struggling to pull herself towards reality, to wake herself up, she felt a cool hand on her forehead that brought her straight up in bed.

Embarrassment immediately flooded her when she realized that she had again awoken Noah with her nightmares. She felt raw and exposed sitting there in the almost dark looking into his eyes. It almost seemed as though he was trying to take the pain away from her, and maybe he was, but she understood now that she had to face this on her own.

Puck watched as Rachel consciously regulated her breathing to calm herself down. He wished he could take away her fear so she wouldn't be haunted by the past. He saw the vulnerability flash in her eyes before her gaze turned hard as she gathered her strength, Puck was proud of her for being so strong, and also a little hopeful that she was realizing how strong she still was.

When Rachel shifted back against her pillows, the reflection of moonlight caught his eye and Puck's eyes traveled down the chain she had been wearing for the past few days to the end where the small white gold band of her wedding ring sat. In that moment it took every ounce of self-control he possessed not to haul her towards him and take her mouth with his. He couldn't push Rachel, not right now, not yet.

Instead he pushed himself off the bed and started towards the door. Turning back he saw the confused look that flashed across her face before she could hide it.

"You're okay now Rach?"

"I'm fine" she answered as he hurried out her bedroom door. Leaning her head back against the wall she wondered what had caused the sudden change in Noah's behavior. It was as her fingers subconsciously started playing with her wedding ring on the end of the chain around her neck that she realized what was wrong. He'd seen the ring, and he'd run.

Pulling the covers back up to her chin, Rachel tries her best to ignore the burning pain in her chest and the hot tears streaking down her cheeks.

* * *

Thursday was a rather uneventful day for Puck and Rachel. By the morning Rachel is talking again, rambling on about the songs she's preparing for Glee club that afternoon. It quickly becomes apparent to Puck that Rachel for all intents and purposes plans on completely ignoring their interaction in her bedroom at 1 o'clock that morning. Maybe that's for the best though considering he didn't really get much sleep after stumbling back into the guest room.

After school had ended for the day at McKinley he and Reid headed over to the school to go over the video footage from the day in order to see if there was any suspicious activity around Becky's locker. After a couple of hours of staring at the computer screens they had noticed nothing out of the ordinary.

"Well fuck, I was kind of hoping we'd catch the idiot and we'd be done with this" Reid says, shaking his head and dragging his hand over his face.

Puck's eyes feel like they've been sand blasted after staring at the monitors for so long but despite knowing it was probably a long shot, he too had gotten his hopes up about catching the guy. The lists of names he had collected from Becky had led nowhere; none of the guys had any sort of record.

As Puck went to bed that night he realized that they needed to step up their game if they were going to catch this guy.

* * *

Unlike Thursday, Friday was a VERY eventful day for Rachel and Puck.

Puck was killing time painting Rachel's living room when just after lunch time his cell phone rang. Dropping the roller back into the paint tray, he unclipped his cell phone from his belt to see that it was Rachel calling. Obviously something new had happened with Becky. It was pretty much the only thing they'd talked about over the past 2 days; Rachel had become very introverted.

"Hey Rach, what happened" he asked, cutting right to the chase.

"Becky found a note in her bag this time. In her first class after lunch she opened her backpack and it was sitting there on top"

"I'll be there in 20 minutes"

Puck once again met with Becky in Rachel's office. They talked through where she had been at lunch, who had been around her, and where her bag had been. However they really didn't have much new information to go on, only that whoever this guy was he had noticed the new security cameras and adjusted his plans accordingly. _Great, we're dealing with a smart bastard, _Puck thought after Becky had left the office. He was right last night, they needed to figure out a way to find this guy and fast; he was becoming a real pain in his ass.

That night at dinner Puck was contemplating the best way to draw out the guy bothering Becky without putting her in danger, or at least he was trying to but with Rachel off in her own world decidedly not talking to him it was a little difficult, he didn't understand why she suddenly had so little to say to him, it was like all the progress they'd made up until Wednesday had just disappeared.

Just as Puck was about to confront Rachel and ask her what was wrong he heard footsteps coming up the front steps of the house, followed very quickly by the doorbell ringing.

Standing behind Rachel as she opened the front door his eyes went wide when he saw who was standing on the front porch.

"Well, aren't you going to invite us in?" Quinn said looking back at her husband Artie who was on the front walk just beyond the few steps to the porch.

Rachel stood frozen for a long while, unable to understand why Quinn and Artie were showing up out of the blue. She had spent the past year and a half pushing everyone away, and suddenly they were all showing up on her front step.

"I am so sick and tired of people thinking they can just waltz back into my life and show up on my front porch!" Rachel yelled stepping forwards towards Quinn, where she promptly hugged her and burst into tears.

* * *

**A/N 2: Remember 100****th**** reviewer gets a oneshot! So don't forget to review.**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: **I'm back! Did you miss me? Okay so you are not impressed, I understand, but real life got in the way, sorry! On the bright side I have the rest of the chapters all planned out and more free time coming up over the next 2 weeks so I hope to finish (or get close to finishing at least) in that time period. I have since I last updated this added Part 2 to A Familiar Face in the Dark and published Beached Desire and Unlocked. Unlocked is part of a round robin I'm doing with sassy26, jlz, and 2looney based on prompts from Texts From Last Night (link to the LJ community is in my profile)

**Disclaimer: **Is Glee on 24/7? Is Mark Salling banned from wearing shirts on screen ever again? No? Then I guess I don't own Glee.

* * *

When Puck gets back from the garage with a large piece of plywood to use as a make-shift ramp for Artie to get inside Rachel and Quinn are sitting on the porch swing laughing and crying and hugging. "Women" he comments to Artie who just nods, looking just as perplexed as he feels.

When the guys make it into the house Artie heads for the table in the kitchen while Puck goes to the fridge grabbing 2 beers before joining him. They sat in silence for a few minutes, Puck absentmindedly picking at the label on the beer bottle.

"Where are the boys?"

"They're with my parents, but dude we're not here to discuss my life" Puck sighed, lifting the bottle to his lips and taking a long drag of beer before looking at Artie again.

"I know"

Puck downed half his beer before placing it back down on the table and starts talking, he spills the whole story to Artie. He starts with what happened after Rachel left (He spent the first two weeks in the bar closest to the apartment until his Supervisor dragged him out of there one night, he went from drinking his problems away to spend every spare hour he had in the gym, sweating his problems away) and goes on to tell him all about what brought him to Lima. He also tells Artie about the other night in Rachel's room when he saw her wearing her wedding ring and how much he wants to put their marriage back together.

"But I don't know man, she's not ready. I don't know if she'll _ever _be ready"

Out on the porch Rachel and Quinn stopped crying long enough to discuss everything that was going on in Rachel's life. So just like inside in the kitchen the whole story came spilling out. Rachel's panic attacks, her fears and her insecurities about her relationship with Noah.

"What can I do Quinn, I don't want to lose him but I'm just not ready yet"

* * *

Later that night at Artie's parents house Quinn and Artie were lying in bed when Quinn suddenly turned to face her husband.

"I know interfering in our friend's lives is not a great idea, but they need our help"

Artie chuckled at his wife "Normally I don't approve of your meddling, but this time I think you're right, they won't talk to each other"

* * *

Puck and Quinn were sitting in the kitchen at Artie's parents' house the next day watching through the window as Artie wheels Daniel around on his lap and Rachel is playing with Christopher on the jungle gym.

It's become a bit of a recurring habit this weekend so far, sitting at a kitchen table discussing his non-relationship with Rachel. But as he watched Rachel with Christopher his heart clenched; she had a huge grin on her face and was running around happier than he'd seen her since he arrived in Lima. He'd always known Rachel would make a great mom when the time came, she'd raise their son or daughter to be strong and sure and to always dream big. That future seemed so out of his grasp these days and that must have shown on his face.

"She thinks you'll leave once this mess is over, she believes that you don't want her anymore"

"What! How could she ever think that?"

Quinn looked at him with an amused expression on her face before answering, "Because you're the idiot who went running from her room when you saw she was wearing her wedding ring on the chain around her neck"

Puck groaned, rubbing his hand over the back as Quinn just started laughing, "You two are such a mess, talk to her Puck"

"I will, but I left because I wanted her _too _much, and she's not ready for that Q"

Quinn nodded her head in agreement "I know Puck, Artie told me but you really have to talk to her; you're right she's not ready, but that doesn't mean she doesn't want you too"

As Puck watched Rachel pushing Christopher on the swing he thought back to when Rachel had had a pregnancy scare back in college. They'd only _officially _been a couple for a little over 4 months when he showed up at her apartment after class to have her open the door, turn around and walk over to the couch where she had sat down staring straight ahead. After sitting down beside her he noticed the white stick sitting on the table in front of her the word "PREGNANT" glaring up at him. Puck stopped breathing; his first reaction was panic. He'd been through this once before and despite the fact that he and Rachel were together and happy he still had insecurities a mile wide from back in high school.

His second reaction, the one he had barely even acknowledged to himself, had been calm. While the thought of having a kid scared him senseless, the thought of having a kid _with Rachel _hadn't really scared him at all. He hadn't thought too much into it at the time but looking back now he could point to that moment as the one where he realized she was it for him.

He'd consoled Rachel while she had freaked out about her future, about their lack of parenting skills and severe lack of money and once she'd calmed down enough he had picked up the phone and made a doctor's appointment for later that week. At which point Rachel had proceeded to attack him with her lips, thanking him for proving he cared and was taking responsibility.

It was at the doctor's appointment that week that things changed; they'd taken another pregnancy test and had an ultrasound done and were waiting in the doctor's office when they came back with the news that Rachel wasn't pregnant, it had been a false positive. Rachel had been relieved to not have to change her dreams of making it big; Puck had ignored the burning in his chest at hearing the news.

"She would've been a great mom"

He hadn't realized he'd said that out loud until Quinn placed her hand over his on the table, giving it a gentle squeeze and said "She _will _be a great mom, and you will be a fantastic dad"

Sitting in the Abrams kitchen that afternoon Puck allowed himself to think about a future with Rachel, a family, for the first time since she had left New York running.

* * *

That evening after dinner at the Abram's Puck and Rachel headed back to her house. Walking up the front steps to the house Rachel saw the dark black marks covering on her front door in the fading sunlight.

"Please stop interfering! We're meant to be together."

Quickly pushing the panic aside, Rachel focused instead on the rising anger over seeing her newly painted front door ruined. Jerking her keys from her purse she stomped over to the door, shoved the key into the lock and slammed into the house shoving the door closed behind her out of habit she heard the muttered "Shit!" break through the haze of anger.

She turned around quickly to see Noah rub the tip of his nose before smirking at her, "Easy there killer"

"I'm sorry Noah! I'm just livid at the thought of that creep coming onto my property whenever we're not around, and now he has the guts to mar my beautiful new front door"

He chuckled, rubbing his nose again and Rachel started to worry she'd really hurt him "Are you sure your nose is okay?" she asked stepping closer to get a good look at it.

When they were face to face he nodded before his gaze dropped to his neck. Despite her misgivings she had not been able to take off the chain with her wedding ring on it; it had kept her calm these past few days, like an anchor to reality, to a future where things were better and safe. Now she wasn't so sure that was a smart idea.

Noah reached his hand up and gently pulled on the chain until it was out from underneath her shirt; grabbing the ring he twisted it around his finger with a pained expression on his face. Rachel tried and failed to suppress the shiver that wracked her body or keep her breathing even. She missed him so much, she missed _them _so much but she had to wonder if they could ever get back to that place again, she wondered if he even wanted too.

Before she could comprehend what was happening his lips were on hers, warm and gentle. She fell into the kiss, letting her body feel for the first time in too long before pulling away and leaning her forehead against his.

"Sorry"

Rachel pulled back slightly and grabbed a hold of his arms, relishing in the muscular definition under her palms she felt her pulse quicken again.

"You don't have to be sorry Noah. Let's go sit in the kitchen"

Puck followed Rachel to the kitchen table silently berating himself for kissing her. It had been amazing, and it had cemented for him that he would do anything he could to get them back on track, but he didn't want to push Rachel too far, not yet at least.

After sitting down at the table Rachel reached over and grabbed his hands in hers, it was the first time she had initiated any physical contact between them and he couldn't help but feel a tiny beam of hope at that.

"Rach, I need you to know that I want you, I've always wanted you and I will always want you. You're my wife and even though we haven't been acting like husband and wife lately I still want us to work"

Puck took in a deep breath after his mini speech, it was all new to him to be talking about his feelings in such depth, Rachel had always been good at interpreting his "Puck speak" but since she had left he'd grown up and he knew with how fragile she was he needed to be straight forward.

Rachel fought back tears as she listened to Noah pour out his feelings for her, she just wanted him to sweep her up in his arms so they can go back to being normal. But she knew better, she couldn't rush this. Depending on him was an entirely new concept to her.

"I feel the same way Noah, I really do. But I can't rush into this again; I need to find myself again before I can give us a shot. That doesn't mean I don't need you or that I don't want you around, but it does mean that we can't just fall back into being husband and wife easily"

Noah nodded, seeming to understand where she was coming from. She hoped it wouldn't be too hard for him to be around her without _being _with her, she hoped the same thing for herself if she were being honest.

"About the door, I'll call Reid in the morning. I think we need to step things up"

Rachel gave his hand a tight squeeze before standing up. "Goodnight Noah" she said as she turned and walked towards her bedroom.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Huge thanks to Suze (2looney), Jess (jlz), Kels (sassy26) and Nikki for all your input and edits, this chapter would be nothing without you ladies. Also a big thanks to all of you have waited a long time for this update, your patience is amazing. Thank you!**

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Puck and Rachel meet Quinn, Artie and the twins late Sunday morning at the diner for brunch. There's a noticeable difference in the way they interact; she watches as Puck gently wipes a crumb off Rachel's cheek with the pad of his thumb and Rachel ducks her head shyly, reaching for her cup of coffee. It takes no time at all for Quinn to pick up on the fact that they are still totally hot for each other, and quite frankly they're not really hiding it. She hopes they finally got their act together and had a _real _conversation last night.

There's no heavy conversation that morning, just four friends catching up; Rachel is eating up the stories of the boys' last two years and Quinn can see Puck trying to contain his smile. They're her best friends and Quinn wants to see them both happy again, she knows she's never seen them as happy as when they're together. It's been like that since their sophomore year of high school when they got together for the first time. No one, not even the two of them had seen it then, but they were the best thing that had ever happened to each other and Quinn hoped for the best.

By the end of their meal she's almost forgotten the past two years even happened to them, they are talking, smiling, laughing, and truthfully they look at one another like they make each other's day. She thinks they probably do. It seems more intense than it had been before Rachel's attack; and Quinn kind of understands that. You either come out of something like that stronger than before or you don't at all. And although for a while it seemed like they weren't going to make it, Quinn has her doubts that they can stay apart for very long.

* * *

When they've said their goodbyes and settled into the van Quinn watches as Rachel slides in next to Puck, leaning her head against his side as he wraps his arm around her shoulder and she just knows that they'll make it.

"You know, I'm going to miss them," Rachel says once they're in the car and pulling out of the parking lot. He doesn't know whether she means Quinn and Artie, or the twins, or maybe all of them. But it gives him hope, because she's finally getting her life back together, missing her friends and enjoying spending time with kids. All without getting that far away look in her eye he'd been seeing ever since that night almost two years ago, the one that meant she was reliving some part of the terrifying ordeal.

"We'll see them again soon," he answers back, seeing that's a safe enough bet. She just nods as a small smile tugs at her lips.

She knows she should be panicking, completely freaking out over his use of the word _we_. It's what she would have been doing last week. She hasn't been a part of a '_we' _since she left New York after the attack. But that sense of calm and security she had once felt whenever Noah was next to her was returning. She wasn't deluding herself into believing things were perfect, or that things between them would ever be the way they were before, but just maybe, if they could make it through this together, everything would work out. The thought that their relationship could end up stronger than ever brings a smile to her face.

She's been smiling ever since they got in the car, so Puck knows the moment something is wrong. They're walking down the produce aisle in the only decent grocery store in this area of Lima when the smile drops from her face in an instant. When he follows her gaze he sees her fathers heading down the aisle towards them looking ecstatic, beaming at the two of them like they were the best thing they'd seen in years. He's not quite sure what the story is between Rachel and her dads Ben and Greg, but from the look on her face he has a feeling the relationship between fathers and daughter is strained.

"Noah, how great to see you! And with our Rachel," Ben says holding out his hand, which Puck shakes tentatively before moving on to shake Greg's' hand.

Rachel is clenching her jaw and her cheeks are turning this adorable shade of pink they get when she's mad. He's worried about her, and although he's still confused by what's going on he wraps his arm around her waist, pulling her a little closer. She relaxes only slightly into his embrace, still shooting fire out of her eyes at her fathers, who have yet to really acknowledge her.

It's when Greg looks at him and asks "So did my daughter finally come to her senses and apologize to you for her childish actions?" that he starts to get it.

Rachel has become incredibly interested in selecting tomatoes and Puck wonders how hard she's fighting to keep her anger in check and not just toss the tomatoes at her fathers. Look, Puck knows that the Berry's love their daughter but he remembers back to high school, when they were best friends and he knows that they always taught her to be strong and confident and to face her problems head on. The Rachel he knows is strong and confident and that hasn't changed since the attack. Given all she's been through it's understandable that she's shown some weakness. And if anyone should understand that, he would think it would be Greg and Ben, however that is clearly not the case.

"With all due respect sir, Rachel has absolutely nothing to apologize to me for. If anything I should be the one apologizing to her. "

Ben is shaking his head, Greg has a look of disapproval on his face and Rachel is gripping a green pepper so hard he's sure it's going to fall apart.

"You don't have anything to apologize for Noah," Ben answers back. He doesn't know what he's talking about, but whatever, he wasn't there, he couldn't know.

He gently grabs Rachel's elbow with the intention of walking away, which only proves to gain her attention just in time for Greg to say, "We raised Rachel better than to run away from her problems."

He's had about enough of this crap, he understands completely now why Rachel's mood worsened rapidly the moment she saw her fathers. And if he weren't so sure that she still loved them he'd punch Greg in the face, seriously.

Rachel turns to walk out of the store but he stops her, pulling her in close to his side so she hears what he has to say, because this is as much for her as it is for her fathers.

"Greg, Ben," he started, looking at each man in turn, "you can't even begin to imagine what Rachel has been through. You did raise a strong and confident woman and that was stolen from her. So don't you dare judge her for her actions, because leaving New York was the best thing she could have done for herself, and frankly, for us." He'd meant to give this little speech as calmly as possible, but his anger was rising with each word and it reflected in his tone of voice when he continued, "And what apologies are or aren't said will stay between Rachel and I, so keep out of our fucking business."

_Well that went exactly as planned_, Puck thinks sarcastically as he guides Rachel away from her fathers and back towards the parking lot, leaving an irritated Ben and Greg staring after them.

When they get back to the car Rachel grabs the keys from his hands and walks around to the driver's side door. She slides in, adjusting the seat and mirrors with choppy movements as he warily slides into the seat next to her and watches out of the corner of his eye as she puts the keys in the ignition and starts the car before buckling her seatbelt. He's really starting to get nervous and he has a horrible flash of her peeling out of the parking lot at high speed and plowing the car into a light post. And really, she survived everything that's happened over the past 2 years, and he's just gotten her back in his life, he's not ready to lose her like that. Much to his surprise though she puts the car in drive and calmly pulls out of the parking lot and turns toward home. He thinks he gets it then, everything is spiraling out of control around her and she needs, even if only for a few minutes, to feel like she's in control.

* * *

She's sitting at the table in the kitchen an hour later with a cup of tea he made sitting in front of her, her hands wrapped around the mug as she processes everything that just happened.

"Thank you" she whispers finally, so quietly she's not sure he heard her.

He's sitting across the table watching her with a worried expression on his face but when she whispers those words he shakes his head, and raises his hand to drag it over his face. She's just noticing how tired he looks; there are dark circles under his eyes and the cute crow's feet he always had at the corner of his eyes are more pronounced. And while she has to appreciate the extra muscle definition, a clear indicator he'd been spending a lot of time in the gym lately, the rest of it leaves a burning in her stomach. Because she's done all that, she left him behind because she was scared. Maybe her fathers were right.

She doesn't even realize she'd said that last part out loud until she hears him growl, "The hell they are."

She looks back up at him and he looks upset, actually he looks pissed. She knows her fathers love her even if they aren't showing it very well right now, and she knows, thanks to Noah's rant in the grocery store that he doesn't fault her for what she did and that he doesn't approve of how her fathers are treating her. It doesn't stop her from feeling guilty every time she looks at him and realizes she still loves him, probably more than she did two years earlier. She still knows she can't rush herself into things again, they can't pick up right where they left off, but she has a feeling he isn't going anywhere any time soon, so they have time to rebuild their life.

She gives him a small smile and he must have seen something in her gaze because his face softened and he leaned over the small table to place a gentle kiss to her lips. Her heart started to race and her breathing became shallow and she remembered she'd felt this way before, when she was a teenager and he was her best friend who would kiss her on occasion. As he leaned back to take his seat, she wraps her arm around his neck and drags him back towards her for a proper kiss. It doesn't last nearly long enough and does nothing to take away her need for him, but she chooses to believe it'll help them both after the day they've had.

* * *

By three o'clock on Monday Puck was exhausted. He and Reid had spent the day conducting interviews with the male students that Becky interacted with on a regular basis and had discovered nothing. He wanted nothing more than to go home and have a nice cold beer and sit in front of the television with Rachel. He wasn't sure exactly when he'd started thinking of Lima, of Rachel's house, as home but he knew it felt right. He figured that it wasn't the city that made it home, it was Rachel, and he'd go anywhere with her. Realizing this was the final push he needed to pick up the phone and call his boss back in New York City. It was time to transfer to the Lima PD.

* * *

"Last session you explained the letters you had been receiving back in New York. I know it will be difficult but I think you need to tell me everything about the attack that night two years ago. Just the facts about what happened; you'll never make progress until you get it all out in the open"

Rachel looked at Dr. Robbins with what she was sure was a horrified expression on her face.

"I thought we'd work through it a little bit at a time," she said quietly, tears threatening to spill over already.

"In the long run it will be more beneficial for you to tell me what happened that night all at once, that way I can understand your reactions and we can help you work through your emotional trauma from that night in future sessions. That emotional trauma is the reason you're here, and that's what we need to start working on," Dr. Robbins replied in a gentle voice, placing her hand softly on Rachel's knee, "Okay?"

She nodded slowly, taking a few deep breaths, and after a few moments of silence, Rachel began to talk.

"It was early September and I'd left the window in our room open, like I did almost every night during the summer. Noah had called to tell me he was running late at the precinct so I went to bed early. I had been so stressed because of the letters. I hadn't been sleeping and I was exhausted; I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow."

_She woke with a start, the feel of a gag being pressed over her mouth creating instant panic. Thrashing around she let out a short yelp and she felt bindings at her wrists tighten as she moved. Groggy from sleep her reactions were slow, and her attacker managed to gag her properly before she could scream again. She heard him laugh while she attempted to struggle free; she still had her legs untied._

_"Don't panic dear"_

_Rachel refused to let him get the best of her. She continued to struggle in his grasp, but soon he had grabbed her legs firmly and was tying up her ankles. She had managed to kick him in the nose, she could tell by the blood dripping onto her legs but he had the power and got the better of her, tying her completely to the bed. The panic truly set in then, she was basically a sitting duck. What did he want with her?_

_He began talking then; the familiarity of his voice coupled with the terrifying knowledge that she couldn't identify it had the fear she was trying so hard to pin down shoving at her hard-fought strength._

_His words taunted her as he stood over her with the knife in his hand, the glint of the streetlights outside bouncing off the steel blade and making her blood run cold. He stood at the bottom of the bed, hidden in the dark of the shadows, repeating the phrases from letters she'd been receiving for 6 months. Proclaiming his love, his need to be with her. Rachel struggled in the bindings around her wrists and ankles. She could feel the ropes digging into her skin making it raw, but she couldn't just lie there and not fight back. He laughed and just kept talking repeating over and over again that she was his, how he longed for her and watched her perform, knowing he had to have her. It made her sick to think he had been watching her and she had never realized it._

_He moved from the bottom of the bed then, but not close enough to enter into her line of sight. If only she could place his voice, not knowing who wanted to hurt her was scaring her the most._

_"You know love; it wasn't very nice of you to turn me down every time I asked you out. We were always supposed to be together," he finally said, his voice barely a whisper in the room, but laced with a fury that had her heart clench in fear, as she gasped and bit down on the gag as she felt the sharp sting of a blade slice through her skin; recognition coursed through her as she felt the sticky warmth of her blood dripping down her side. Alec._

_She'd met him her first day of classes at NYU, he'd been shy and quiet and ultimately had just given her the creeps. She'd only remained a student at NYU for a year and a half before landing her first role on Broadway and leaving school in order to pursue her career. Over the course of that year and a half Alec had repeatedly asked her out, but Rachel had turned him down, as gently as possible, each time. She'd never believed he'd had this in him, sure he'd given her the creeps; but he'd never actually struck her as a psychopath._

_Preoccupied with her memories of Alec back at NYU she didn't see him lower the knife to her side once more; only the slicing pain and her muffled scream broke her out of her thoughts, refocusing her attention on how she was going to get free. She tugged her arms, trying to loosen the rope binding her to the bed, but only succeeded in making the rope dig into her skin even tighter._

_He began humming the tune to _Take Me or Leave Me _from _RENT_, the musical she starred in as Maureen in her college's production, as he slowly cleaned the blade of the knife on a cloth he pulled from his pocket before lowering the blade to her side once more and slicing into her skin as she bit her lip to keep herself from showing any pain. _

_He slowly repeated the process two more times as he kept humming. Tears of pain welled up in her eyes she tried to keep her features still and her groaning to a minimum. She knew all she could control was her reaction. Focusing on controlling her emotions was the only way to survive. ,. When he stopped Alec walked up to the top of the bed, looking her in the eyes. His eyes were black, and wide with indescribable emotions. _

"_One for each time you rejected me, now I'm going to take you away from here, and every time you look in the mirror you'll remember that we are destined to be together baby," Alec whispered in a surprisingly strong voice._

_Panic ripped through her at his words, she couldn't let him take her from the apartment, if he took her down through the back fire escape no one would see. Attempting to stall she began writhing on the bed and tugging on her bindings. She saw his eyes flash with anger and the blade of his knife swipe down dangerously close to her neck._

_He didn't need to voice the threat, she understood perfectly that if she tried to resist she wouldn't survive. Calming herself down, she found comfort solely in the fact that Noah would realize something was terribly wrong when he got home from the precinct and she just had to stay alive long enough for him to find her._

_Seeing she had submitted to his silent threat, he slowly began to untie her feet. When the bindings had been released he bent to pick up a rag off the floor where he had placed the extra rope, soaking it in what she assumed to be chloroform. She fought hard to control her panic, to keep a calm exterior in order to appease Alec._

_Walking back towards her head he pulled the gag from her mouth and quickly covered her face with the chloroform soaked rag. She began to feel dizzy, her mind blurring; the last thing she remembers is hearing the front door to the apartment unlock and seeing Alec retreat quickly to the open window leading to the fire escape before she slips out of consciousness. _


End file.
